Colin A. Young11/19/18 4:30 PM

Cannabis Control Commission Chairman Steven Hoffman was interested in seeing how the marijuana products at New England Treatment Access are packaged and labeled, so he suggested moving to the part of the retail store he had been told would be used for recreational sales starting Tuesday. Read More

A New England Treatment Access employee showed Cannabis Control Commission Chairman Steven Hoffman how he would measure out an eighth of marijuana flower for a customer once retail sales begin Tuesday. [Photo: Colin A. Young/SHNS] | Hi-Res

Colin A. Young11/19/18 4:00 PM

More than two years after voters made marijuana legal for adults to use, buy and grow, cannabis consumers will get the ultimate green light Tuesday when retail pot shops in Northampton and Leicester can open their doors for the first time to recreational customers. Read More

Northampton Mayor David Narkewicz will be the first person to buy non-medical marijuana from the retail shop in his city on Tuesday. [Photo: Colin A. Young/SHNS] | Hi-Res

Katie Lannan11/19/18 12:21 PM

Boston Mayor Martin Walsh, asked about his political plans in a Sunday television interview, said he's not ready to look to the future. But when it comes to who he supported in the gubernatorial election earlier this month, Walsh said he'd rather look ahead than at the recent past. Read More

STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE11/19/18 12:01 PM

Students from Marblehead and Stoughton visited the House chamber Monday morning to witness firsthand the enactment of bills relative to the charter and clerk salary in the town of Everett, authorizing the Salvation Army of Massachusetts to merge with the non-profit's New York chapter, and allowing for the appointment of special police officers in Salem and a local ballot question in Arlington over whether to award additional liquor licenses. With Thanksgiving on Thursday, the House will meet once more this week on Wednesday morning. Read More

Matt Murphy11/19/18 2:36 PM

The engineering firm that helped to build One World Trade Center and Arthur Ashe Stadium in New York will lead the state's study into the feasibility of building out passenger rail from Boston to either Springfield or Pittsfield. Read More

Michael P. Norton11/19/18 2:15 PM

Katie Lannan11/19/18 1:48 PM

Projecting a 15 percent to 20 percent increase in traffic volume as Thanksgiving approaches, with more than 1.5 million people moving through Logan Airport and a "very unsettled weather pattern," state officials are recommending travelers take additional time and caution this week. Read More

Michael P. Norton11/19/18 1:01 PM

State officials studying traffic woes must include pricing and other incentives to reduce congestion, according to a leading transportation advocate, who told a state board Monday that drivers around Massachusetts are wasting too much time and fuel sitting on or crawling through overcrowded roads. Read More

STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE11/19/18 12:20 PM

...A former Senate aide is returning to the State House, now in Senate President Karen Spilka's office, after three years at the Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation...Boston's new chief information officer held a similar role in Washington, D.C....the state Office of Coastal Zone management has a new regional coordinator for the Boston Harbor area....please enjoy the Personnel File... Read More

STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE11/19/18 11:40 AM

The Senate passed one bill, dealing with property tax deferrals in Arlington, before adjourning in memory of former Majority Leader Fred Berry, whose funeral was held Saturday. With the Thanksgiving holiday on Thursday, the Senate plans to hold its next session on Wednesday at 11 a.m. Read More

Katie Lannan11/19/18 10:57 AM

Two people have been diagnosed with measles in Lowell this month, and state public health officials are advising others who may have been exposed to the contagious disease to contact their health providers and get vaccinated. Read More

Friday, Nov. 16, 2018

STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE11/16/18 5:59 PM

Three months after a House and Senate conference committee failed to reach agreement on a major education funding bill, the state Board of Education plans to meet Tuesday in Malden to discuss spending priorities and budget recommendations for fiscal 2020. Read More

Matt Murphy11/16/18 5:25 PM

Seth Moulton is to Capitol Hill as BLANK is to Beacon Hill. Give up? Maybe that's because if this were a Massachusetts politics SAT question, it would be a trick. Read More

A pre-Thanksgiving week exhibit at the State House featured interactive videos about the native people who lived in Massachusetts before the 1620 arrival of the Mayflower, including dueling perspectives of leaders like Wampanoag Muhsasoyut 8sameeqan and Pilgrim Gov. William Bradford. Commission on Indian Affairs director Jim Peters, pictured at the exhibit on Friday, was featured as one of the video presenters. [Photo: Sam Doran/SHNS] | Hi-Res

Katie Lannan11/16/18 10:50 AM

STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE11/16/18 7:00 AM

... Transition team leaders as the Suffolk DA's office changes hands ... a new comms director at the state Department of Public Health ... a former top Beacon Hill aide surfaces in a new role at Lyft ... changes at the upper levels of the HHS secretariat ... and a new chair at the Anti-Defamation Leage ... Please enjoy the Personnel File ... Read More

Colin A. Young11/16/18 5:25 PM

More than 730 days after voters approved a law to legalize marijuana, people 21 or older will be able to legally buy the drug in the Bay State next week, marking the first time cannabis will be commercially and legally available on the East Coast. Read More

Michael P. Norton11/16/18 12:52 PM

More than five people per day died from confirmed or estimated opioid-related overdoses over the first nine months of this year, according to numbers released Friday morning by state public health officials. Read More

Colin A. Young11/16/18 12:41 PM

As cities and towns participating in a program that provides state funds to support affordable housing and open space preservation watch the state's contribution dwindle, Community Preservation Act advocates have fresh hope that Gov. Charlie Baker supports a fix. Read More

Michael P. Norton11/16/18 9:33 AM

With Gov. Charlie Baker under pressure to deliver on his promise of a better MBTA, three groups not normally associated with each other are now planning to release a report in the first quarter of 2019 assessing the transit agency's progress toward meeting the goals of its 2017 strategic plan. Read More